


Death Dance

by CosmicallyLyss



Series: Riverdale Demigods [2]
Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Percy Jackson Fusion, Angst, Heavy Angst, I'm Bad At Tagging, Its a lot, M/M, Reggie is kind of an ass in the beginning, but also they are, check out my other fic in this universe if you wanna know all their parentages, i dont wanna repeat it all, if you dont know who they are, kevangs, kevangs is endgame, they arent super important, they were in the original percy jackson series, will and nico show up
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-14
Updated: 2019-01-13
Packaged: 2019-10-09 22:36:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,999
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17413826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CosmicallyLyss/pseuds/CosmicallyLyss
Summary: My second work in the Riverdale Demigods universe!! For those that have read When The Day Met The Night, this is another installment in the same universe! It's not a direct sequel though, this takes place a few months later." Archie was staring at Kevin with an incredulous look in his eyes. “You can’t just go down to the Underworld! The closest entrance is in Los Angeles, and you and I both know Fangs has a few hours left at best! Kev… I don’t think he’s going to pull through. And I know it hurts, but you need to face the facts. He’s got lungs filled with poison. He’ll be dead before you even show up at the entrance to the Underworld. You can’t do this.”Kevin’s was blood was boiling as if it were made of Hydra venom. Fangs had stepped in front of him to fight off the Hydra heads. He had gone down protecting Kevin, and Kevin wasn’t going to just let him die. But Archie was telling him to give up? Telling him he couldn’t do it? Kevin was a medic. A healer. He wasn’t losing a patient, especially one who owned his heart. “I can’t?” Kevin spat. “Watch me.” "tl,dr; Fangs is dying and Kevin needs to go through hell and back - literally - to save him





	Death Dance

**Author's Note:**

> This. Has. Heavy. Angst.
> 
> Alright, glad we got that out of the way. I noticed that the Kevangs tag was looking a little dry, so I'm replenishing my otp's tag with a fic that was originally supposed to be a really long one-shot. I hope you enjoy!!

“Everybody keep your masks on!” Kevin was screaming to get his message across, his voice muffled by his own mask. The exposed part of his face was red from sweat and exertion, his crossbow ready to fire at any moment with his medicine bag strapped to his armor-clad side. “Ares kids and Hephaestus kids, I want you on the front lines with me!” Kevin coughed, his mask stuffy and sticky with sweat. Sweet Pea had stepped up towards Kevin’s right side, brandishing his club.

 

Kevin had become fast friends with Sweet Pea. Not only was the boy his boyfriend’s brother, he was just an overall good person to be around. And in the seven months that Sweet Pea had spent at Camp Half Blood, his combat skills increased exponentially. His favorite weapon was his switchblade - he had been clutching it upon his unconcious entrance into Camp Half Blood - but in drastic situations, he had learned to adapt to his secondary weapon. It was a war club, almost like a mace in nature, made of celestial bronze with tendrils of fire wrapping around it head.

 

“Alright, Doctor Keller,” Sweet Pea muttered through his mask, grip tight on the hilt of his club. “Tell me what you need.”

 

“Really?” Reggie had advanced to make his way to Kevin’s left side, his spear held aggressively in his right hand. “You’ll listen to the son of the music god for tips on how to fight the fricken Hydra? You should listen to someone that never makes a mistake in combat. Someone that’s the son of the god of war. Someone like me.” Of course, Reggie’s fatal flaw of arrogance was shining down on Camp Half Blood like the sun on a cloudless day. Reggie’s rivalry with Sweet Pea had been unbreakable ever since the newer boy was claimed as a child of Hephaestus on his first day.

 

“I’ve never heard of Keller making a mistake in combat. And he’s the son of the god of healing, too. He’s one of six healers at this camp, which makes him way more valuable than one of the all too numerous Ares kids.” Sweet Pea sneered, taking the time to roll his eyes. “Now, how about you stop acting like a little kid and focus on protecting our camp?”

 

“Oh yeah? I could say the same thing for you.” Reggie spat. “It’s you that’s got the name of a five year old girl, Candy Cane.”

 

“At least people actually want a taste of me. Can you say the same?” Sweet Pea was able to focus in even better on the battle while Reggie was trying to egg him on. His disputes with the other demigod always filled him with a sense of adrenaline that gave him a rush through his veins. Sweet Pea slowly crept up towards the Hydra, his flaming bronze club leaving a trail of smoke behind him.

 

Reggie must have been about to come up with another smart-aleck comment, because Kevin - his voice hoarse from the exertion of shouting out orders to most of the kids in camp - said “Reginald Mantle, if you don’t can it, I will personally tell Dionysus about what I saw you doing with the Demeter girls last week.”

 

“You wanna play that game?” Reggie questioned, turning away from the Hydra completely. “I’ll tell Chiron all about how you and Fangs were making out at the bonfire last night.”

 

Just as Kevin scowled, muttering a “Just focus on the battle, Reggie.”, a tanned boy carrying his trademark makhaira darted in between the quarreling kids.

 

“I heard my name?” Fangs asked with a sly grin on his face, covered by his mask. “By the way, it was more than just making out.” At that, he threw Kevin a wink, causing the medic to lower his crossbow slightly to whisper a ‘not now’ at his boyfriend. Fangs only grinned, shifting his attention to the Hydra in front of them. “Alright, how many heads does this thing have left?”

 

“Ten,” Sweet Pea said, tightening his mask around his face.

 

“Nope…” Kevin muttered, his muscles sore from how hard he had been gripping his crossbow. Across the open field, Betty had just sliced off one of the Hydra’s heads with her whip, cursing up a storm as two grew back in its spot. “Now we got eleven. Alright, guys. The fumes are getting much stronger. No matter what, keep your mask on. Retreat if you need to. Try not to talk. Just… Expose your strengths, but keep in mind we’ve all got weaknesses.”

 

Kevin looked towards Cheryl, standing a few yards away, and signaled to her. The redhead grabbed her girlfriend’s hand, and both of them yelled “Attack… Now!” Cheryl swung her shortsword out in front of her as Toni unsheathed two of her throwing knives. The girls charged the hydra, slicing and stabbing at its body, trying to form a distraction so the other demigods could work on its abundance of heads. Veronica was standing next to Archie, one hand holding a shield in front of her and the other raised high above her head. She was willing the water on the Hydra’s scales to come towards her. The Hydra was a sea serpent; if Veronica could get the serpent dehydrated, its defenses would lower greatly. Archie had his pistol locked and loaded, the celestial bronze bullets being fired at rapid speeds, puncturing the scales of the Hydra and causing it to hiss with all eleven of its heads. Jughead, Betty, and Josie were all leading large flanks of campers, their bronze weapons glinting in the sunlight.

 

_ Just a few seconds longer… _ Kevin murmured to himself. One of the Hydra’s heads whipped around, and Kevin released his arrow, smiling with satisfaction as it landed in one of its eyes. The creature let out a pained howl, and Kevin only nocked another arrow in his bow. Out of his peripheral vision, he noticed Sweet Pea and Fangs fighting together. The brothers always said they felt more powerful as a duo, and Kevin could see where they came from with their claim. Where Sweets was all brute force and powerful strikes, Fangs had an air of elegance and grace to his fighting style. “Doc?” Kevin turned to the sound of Sweet Pea’s voice. The taller boy always called Kevin by some form of name other than his first name. To the son of Hephaestus, Kevin was known as Keller, Doc, Doctor, Commander, and Sunflower.

 

“What is it, Sweets?”

 

“Come fight with us. We want your strategy. Besides, Sweets and I are close-range combat. You’re long-range, and if you come with us, it’ll just be better for the battle.” Fangs said, looking towards Kevin with a look of ‘please?’ evident in his eyes.

 

In what seemed like a blink of an eye, Kevin was situated between Sweet Pea and Fangs, not turning back to admonish them. “I appreciate the offer, but I said no talking. Can’t have my best getting hurt.”

 

If Sweet Pea and Fangs were powerful as a duo, adding Kevin to the equation increased the deadliness of the team by an insane amount. Reggie’s electric-tipped spear was a huge help in taking down the Hydra, as much as Sweet Pea didn’t want to admit it. He thought the son of Ares was more like a son of Narcissus, but he couldn’t deny that Reggie was good with his weapons. As soon as one of the beast’s heads were cut off, the war god’s son was using his spear to latch on the Hydra’s scales and launch himself up to where the Hydra’s neck stump was. He drove his spear into the smoking flesh, watching as the skin and scales crackled with electricity. The charge mixed with the Hydra’s natural water caused an explosive cauterizing reaction, preventing heads from going back. With this rhythm they had going, things were looking good. There were only four heads left.

 

Then, the Hydra caught on to what Reggie was doing. Its tail flicked up towards where Reggie was stationed on one of its necks, and it collided with the teenager, knocking him off and sending him towards the ground. He hit the grass hard, a loud cracking resounding through the field followed by a loud string of curses from Reggie. Kevin had been expecting Reggie to bounce right back from his injury. He had expected the son of Ares to leap back to his feet unphased. But the boy in question was still flat on his back, shouting out in pain. The Hydra turned its four remaining heads on the boy, snapping and snarling as they got closer to him.

 

Fangs gasped, shoving himself behind Sweet Pea and using the shadow he cast along the ground as a source to shadow-travel into the heart of the battle. He appeared right in front of Reggie in one of the shadows a Hydra neck had created. “Fangs, no!” Kevin screamed, dropping his crossbow for the first time in the fight. If Fangs heard Kevin’s outburst, he didn’t answer. His makhaira was held out in front of him, the Stygian iron it was formed from seeming to absorb all the light in his vicinity. Kevin could see how his boyfriend’s chest was heaving, his arms all scratched up from the Hydra heads’ snapping. The son of Hades lifted Reggie up with his left hand, yanking him upwards until he was standing. He shadow-traveled back to Sweet Pea and Kevin with Reggie in tow, almost collapsing when he arrived at his destination.

 

“Infirmary.” Fangs mumbled, his voice slurred and now muffled by the mask. “He needs it.”

 

Kevin looked towards Sweet Pea who nodded, shouting for Archie to run over. The ginger did, nodding when Sweets explained the situation at hand. Reggie stumbled over to Archie, barely coherent. “Arch, check for broken ribs and a concussion.” Kevin advised, a worried frown plastered on his face.

 

“You got it chief.” Archie jokingly saluted and trudged off towards the infirmary, dragging Reggie behind him.

 

With Reggie out of the fight… Their chances had slimmed. It was really only Toni, Sweet Pea, Fangs, and Kevin left as the main fighters. Both of the Ares kids had been injured past the point of fighting after biting off more than they could chew. Kevin’s every muscle was sore, and there was an even deeper ache in the back of his mind. This wasn’t going to end well. As Kevin released the arrow in his crossbow and watched it lodge in the throat of a Hydra neck, he took inventory of his quiver. Only six arrows left… Kevin was dragged out of his planning to retrieve the twenty-nine arrows when he heard Fangs coughing. “Chimera Boy, you alright?” Kevin asked nervously. Whenever Kevin got concerned about the shorter boy, he always referred to him by the nickname he had first called him when Fangs first came to Camp Half Blood. He had been bitten by a Chimera, and Kevin had almost lost him. Kevin had already been worried from Fangs’ coughing - it didn’t sound natural - but the fact that he didn’t respond to Kevin got him even more worried. “Fangs? Talk to me, baby…”

 

“Tired, Kev…” Fangs slurred, coughing once again. “When’s this gonna be over?”

 

Fangs’ question was cut off when a Hydra head shot out at Sweet Pea. The creature had already nicked Sweet Pea’s leg, but Fangs was there to protect his brother almost as fast as the Hydra head was moving. The large head made contact with Fangs, and it knocked his mask off. Kevin’s heart dropped down, down, down. It fell farther than his stomach, farther than the ground, farther than the Underworld. Farther than the deepest pits of Tartarus. Fangs was completely vulnerable to the noxious fumes the Hydra released.

 

“Fangs, get the hell out of there!” Kevin’s voice cracked, his stomach twisting painfully. He felt like he hadn’t eaten in four days. “You’re going to get yourself killed!” The black-haired boy was standing in shock, hand on his bare face like he couldn’t believe his main protection had been knocked off of his face. Kevin hadn’t stopped screaming to get the boy’s attention. Against his head, but following her heart, Kevin sprinted towards his love, fighting back the tears of worry in his eyes. “Fangs! You’ve got no protection, do you have a death wish? You’re going to inhale the fumes! And its blood is poison, you know this!”

 

At this point, it wasn’t just Kevin trying to knock some sense into Fangs. Sweet Pea had placed his hand on Fangs’ shoulder, trying to reason with him. Sweet Pea locked eyes with Kevin, shaking his head as if to say “No, he’s not gonna budge.”

 

Kevin’s defenses were down, something he rarely ever let happen to himself. His worry and concern was overpowering everything, even his survival instinct. Did Fangs not realize he could die? Before Kevin could get an arrow reloaded into his crossbow, he was face to face with a Hydra head. Defenseless. The Hydra spit out venom towards Kevin, most of it landing on his chest plate armor. But there were a few droplets of the poisonous substance that splashed on Kevin’s exposed collarbones, sizzling on impact. “Shit-” He choked out, gritting his teeth to power through the pain. It felt like the skin on his shoulders and collarbones were disintegrating and getting chipped away by acid. Kevin had never been hit with Hydra poison; he wasn’t used to having to power through this specific type of pain. The gods damned Hydra just wouldn’t leave Kevin alone, it kept circling him, hissing out trickles of venom. Kevin’s arms felt so heavy… No. He couldn’t be crumbling down now. 

 

“Kev, watch out!” Fangs. The boy had finally regained the sense to cover his nose and mouth, his palm held close to his face as he slid in front of Kevin, his sword outstretched. His head shot back to look at Kevin with an expression of “I love you, and I’m sorry.” Fangs shoved his left arm back, knocking Kevin out of the line of Hydra heads. The Hydra heads were now focused on the new treat in front of them. All four heads circled around Fangs, slowly breathing out the toxic gas, venom dripping from its sharp teeth.

 

Kevin heard it. Loud and clear. Fangs screamed, and from in between the Hydra heads he could see Fangs fall to the ground, his sword clattering out of his hand.

 

No…

 

Kevin’s vision tunneled. This beast - it hurt Fangs. It deserved to die fifty times over and suffer endlessly in the deepest unexplored valleys of Tartarus. Kevin was going to make sure that happened. Sweet Pea seemed to get the same idea, his lips twisting into a grimace. The boy was holding his club so tightly, his knuckles had started to turn white. “Fire.” Kevin said to Sweet Pea, who understood the simple word immediately. His left hand dropped from the club and a ball of fire surrounded his clenched fist. Kevin and Sweets didn’t have to exchange any more words. They knew how the other boy fought, and they knew what they had to do. Once it dawned on Kevin that between just Sweet Pea and him - Toni had needed to go back to her duties as head counselor that consisted of keeping the younger campers safe - they had no weapon to cut the Hydra’s heads off. Kevin dropped to his knees, snaking through the twisting trunks of the Hydra heads’ necks.

 

His heart almost stopped when he saw Fangs. The boy’s chest was hardly moving, his mouth open and unprotected against the toxins in the air surrounding him. Swallowing his fear, Kevin slung his crossbow over his back and grabbed Fangs’ sword from the dirt. It didn’t feel right in his hand. Kevin wasn’t built for close-quarters combat, and certainly not with a sword crafted out of the metal of the Underworld. But it would have to do. Kevin’s limbs were aching, but he powered through it. His discomfort didn’t matter, not when he could feel Fangs’ life force ebbing away. Kevin didn’t know how he did it, but after screaming in pure frustration, he grabbed on to the Hydra head’s neck, scaling the creature like a slippery rockwall. Kevin felt stronger than usual, more empowered. He dug his heels into the Hydra head, wanting to make it feel as much pain as it had caused Fangs.

 

Kevin wrapped his arms around the Hydra’s throat, the blade of Fangs’ sword pressing against its scales. He wrenched the blade towards himself reveling in the sickening sound of the sword cutting through flesh. The head fell to the ground, turning to dust, and before two heads had the chance to grow back, Sweet Pea was lobbing a sphere of fire at the neck, cauterizing it. Kevin and Sweet Pea were both sweaty messes by the time they had decapitated and burned the last of the Hydra heads. Both boys collapsed to the ground, Sweet Pea clutching his leg, and Kevin trying to catch his breath. The medic had always commended his friends that fought in close combat style, but now he especially appreciated their efforts. The poisonous Hydra venom was itching Kevin, his limbs getting weaker and his neck feeling all swollen. At least now with the Hydra dead, they didn’t need their stupid masks. He ripped his off and dropped it on the ground. If a Demeter kid came to rag on Kevin for “littering”, he would happily remind the demigod that he was one of the two people to take down the Hydra.

 

It hurt Kevin to move, but he could tell Fangs needed him. The boy had been unconscious since the time the Hydra heads turned on him at the same time, breathing out their deadly poison into the boy’s unprotected face. Kevin mustered all the strength he could, but he could barely walk, and settled for crawling towards Fangs, his hands and knees shaking each time they hit the ground. Kevin was touching Fangs as if he was the most fragile piece of porcelain known to man. Slowly, he unclasped Fangs’ sword’s sheath from around his waist and placed the makhaira inside, now tying the covered weapon around his own waist, next to his medic bag. He was gentle to the point of almost not being able to get his job done when he lifted Fangs up from where he was crumpled in on himself to where he was now upright, unconscious body draped over Kevin’s own.

 

“How…” Sweet Pea asked through gritted teeth. “How is he?”

 

Kevin couldn’t lie. “He’s… He could be in a lot of danger. I gotta get him back… But, there’s still so much cleaning left to do here and I know I gotta get Fangs back but there’s still-”

 

“Slow down there, Sunflower. I’ll clean all this up. Go and fix up my brother. I trust you with him, you know that.” Sweet Pea was exhausted, but that didn’t stop him from reaching out and tousling Kevin’s already messy hair. Since Sweet Pea’s arrival, he and Kevin immediately established a sense of kinship, almost as if they too were brothers.

 

“Thank… Thank you, Sweets.” Kevin felt dizzy and drowsy, and he was about to collapse under the weight of supporting two bodies, but he didn’t let it show.”

 

“Anytime,” Sweet Pea closed his eyes, grinning. “Now go work your magic, Doc.”

 

The infirmary’s operating room and emergency care unit were thick with the scent of blood. It took Kevin well over a minute to decipher that a lot of the metallic odor was coming directly from him. He was practically bathed in blood, be it his own or another injured kid’s. Hus arms were trembling as he set Fangs down on one of the hospital beds. Pressing a chaste kiss to his temple, Kevin whispered, “Hang in there, I’ve got you…” Kevin staggered towards the sink, cleaning off his hands and watching the blood run off his pale skin in rivulets, the water making the deep color less pigmented. His hands were still stained pink when he shoved his hands into translucent latex gloves.

 

When the healer walked back towards Fangs, the severity of the situation crashed over Kevin like a tsunami. His bronze armor was melted away from the Hydra poison which was seeping into the cotton of his shirt. Just from the areas of Fangs’ skin that were exposed, Kevin could see the intensity of the burns. They looked like acid burns, running up his right arm, curling around his chest, and stopping right at the base of his neck. The poison had made his skin discolored, an angry red instead of a soft brown. There were spots on his corroded flesh that appeared to be bubbling, a white film smoking on top of the wound. And that was only what Kevin could see. He quickly thanked his father for being so adroit with his fingers as he unbuckled the straps on the remnants of Fangs’ armor, discarding it into the waste bin for contaminated apparel. “No…” Kevin whispered, the situation only getting worse as he continued his initial analysis.

 

The camp-issued orange shirt that Fangs had been wearing under his armor was tattered, and there almost wasn’t enough of it left to constitute it as a shirt. The scraps that were left were soaked in blood or poison, and they smoked, burning to the touch. Kevin cursed, wincing as he grabbed the scraps of the shirt and a pair of surgical scissors from the sterilization cabinet. As he cut the rest of the shirt off of Fangs’ body, he wondered how Fangs must have felt - and could even still be feeling - from the insane heat of the corrosive poison. It was almost unbearable for Kevin to touch even with his gloves on. Kevin could feel a similar burning in specks dotted across his collarbones, but he pushed any pain he was experiencing down and tried to focus on the bigger matter at hand.

 

Fangs wasn’t looking good. Thankfully, his extensive leg armor had only allowed for minor scrapes and bruises, things that would heal with time alone, but it was his upper body that had suffered the worst damage. When Fangs had first arrived at the camp with Sweet Pea a little over seven months ago, he had almost died from a wound to the stomach - a Chimera bite. The poison had been running through his blood and the gash had been so deep he was close to bleeding out. But Kevin had saved his life, and later that day, stolen his heart. The two had been dating ever since, and both knew they’d die for each other. They’d risked it all for the other person multiple times. Kevin pressed the bell of a stethoscope to Fangs’ chest, and brought the eartips to his ears, trying to console himself by hearing Fangs’ heartbeat.

 

If consolation was what Kevin had been trying to receive, listening to Fangs’ heartbeat only provided Kevin with the opposite. His heartbeat was too slow to be stable, irregular, and whenever he exhaled, Kevin could hear a sort of crackling. The Hydra’s fumes… Kevin’s hands trembled. If the toxins were affecting Fangs’ lungs… His chances of survival were low. Kevin’s thoughts were bombarding his head in bursts of ideas, none that lasted long enough to come to fruition. He stumbled back towards the book of all cures the Apollo kids present and past had ever come up with. Hydra venom was easy enough, and Kevin knew this, the spots hit by venom just needed to be disinfected with a mix of nectar and antibiotics. But the poison gas? The only thing that showed up was a sentence in Greek reading “The petals of destruction’s king”.

 

“It’s got to be a flower,” Kevin muttered, frustrated. “But destruction’s king? What in Hades is that supposed to mean?” As Kevin started to treat the venom burns adorning Fangs’ chest and stomach, he attempted to wrap his head around what the book could have meant by ‘destruction’s king’. Outside of the room, he heard the unmistakable sound of Betty’s voice. Betty. A daughter of Athena. Goddess of wisdom. Kevin almost tripped over his feet running out of the room and stopped himself right before crashing into the blonde girl. “Petals of destruction’s king, what’s it mean?”

 

“Well hello, to you too, Kevin.” Betty was laughing, her face still dirt-streaked from the battle.

 

“I’m serious.” Kevin’s green eyes were hard. “Fangs could die. Petals of destruction’s king. Tell me what the hell it means.”

 

Betty’s smile fell, her hands reaching behind her to tighten her ponytail. It was a nervous habit of hers. “Okay, I can only speculate, but petals is obviously referring to a flower-”

 

“Of course it is, Betty, I’m not an idiot! I’m trying to save my boyfriend’s life, would you just help me out? Yeah, petals means a flower, like I didn’t already know that.” Kevin knew his harshness was uncalled for, but at this moment he couldn’t care. Fangs could die, and fixing that matter took precedence over anything else.

 

“Destruction…” Betty murmured, seemingly unphased by Kevin’s outburst. “I’m thinking it could be related to chaos, but Eris wouldn’t have flowers, and really doesn’t bow to a king. But…” Betty’s emerald eyes lit up. “The bringer of destruction… Persephone. She’s got a garden. Flowers. In the Underworld. Who has a king, who just so happens to be Persephone’s husband. Petals of destruction’s king, it’s gotta be something from Persephone’s garden.”

 

Kevin almost cried, and he would have hugged Betty if he didn’t have to worry about keeping his gloved hands clean. “Thank you. Get Archie for me, please?” Betty nodded, and when she put her hand on Kevin’s back, sending him silent support, Kevin almost let the tears fall from his eyes. Swallowing down his worries, he walked back into the room, echoes of “Persephone’s garden” in his head. When Archie walked in a few moments later, he assured Kevin he had already cleaned up multiple times and was ready to work.

 

“You need to keep him alive. I’m leaving.”

 

“What the- Kevin you’re what?”

 

“Leaving.”

 

“What?! Kev, are you crazy? You’re our best medic, and this is your boyfriend. Where would you even be going?”

 

“Hell.”

 

“Kevin I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but-”

 

“I’m literally going to hell. Persephone’s garden. That’s where I’m getting the cure. Fangs is going to live. But until I get back, I need you making sure he stays alive.”

 

Archie was staring at Kevin with an incredulous look in his eyes. “You can’t just go down to the Underworld! The closest entrance is in Los Angeles, and you and I both know Fangs has a few hours left at best! Kev… I don’t think he’s going to pull through. And I know it hurts, but you need to face the facts. He’s got lungs filled with poison. He’ll be dead before you even show up at the entrance to the Underworld. You can’t do this.”

 

Kevin’s was blood was boiling as if it were made of Hydra venom. Fangs had stepped in front of him to fight off the Hydra heads. He had gone down protecting Kevin, and Kevin wasn’t going to just let him die. But Archie was telling him to give up? Telling him he couldn’t do it? Kevin was a medic. A healer. He wasn’t losing a patient, especially one who owned his heart. “I can’t?” Kevin spat. “Watch me.”

 

“Kevin!” Archie was past the point of exasperation. “Think logically! You’ve got no way to get down to the Underworld in the amount of time Fangs has left. It takes about 900 hours to walk from here to L.A., and based on the state of his lungs, Fangs has six - seven if we’re pushing it - hours left. Kev, I’m sorry, but I think it’s best if you just let nature run its course. I know Fangs meant a lot to you, but there’s almost nothing we can do now. Believe me, I know how you fe--”

 

“The hell you do! You have no damn idea about anything I’m going through right now! The most harm that’s come to Veronica is a broken arm! My boyfriend is on his deathbed, and you’re really trying to tell me to give up? Listen to me for once, Archie. I’m the top medic we have at this camp. What I say goes, and I’m saying that you’re keeping Fangs alive until I come back.” Kevin didn’t have time to wait for an answer from Archie. He stormed out of the room, stone-faced. Betty gave him a hopeful smile, but all Kevin could do was stare right through her. He was on auto-pilot.

 

_ Go back to your office. Grab your crossbow. Grab your quiver. Take Fangs’ makhaira. Walk back to your cabin. Replenish your arrows. Take a drachma from your stash. Go to the Hades cabin. Call them. They’ll help. They have to. _

 

__ Kevin stood in the entrance of Cabin Thirteen, a golden drachma in his hand, about to collapse. Physical pain and emotional turmoil were bordering on unbearable. Right in the corner, that was Fangs’ bed. Where they shared their first kiss on the night of Fangs’ arrival. Kevin’s heart was breaking. He couldn’t stop thinking about how Fangs so willingly sacrificed everything for him… And how Kevin was planning on walking through hell and back to keep him alive. His thoughts were overwhelming, but he forced himself to turn away from the sight of the empty bed. He knelt down in front of the obsidian fountain and slowly ran the water. He took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves.

 

“O Iris,” Kevin’s voice was rough; he had to cough before he even got intelligible words out. “Goddess of the rainbow, accept my offering.” He tossed the drachma through the rainbow mist of the fountain and smiled gratefully when the colorful mist began to shimmer. “Please,” Kevin closed his eyes. “Show me Nico di Angelo.”

 

The mist started to thicken, forming a small screen of sorts, color and figures starting to appear. There were two boys who looked to be in their mid-twenties. The first boy that showed up in the mist was looking in front of him with a confused expression. His thick black hair fell in waves over his eyes, which were so dark brown they appeared black, just like the obsidian walls in the Hades cabin. His skin, naturally tan, looked paler than one would expect for someone who lived in California. Nico di Angelo. Next to him, a slightly taller blonde boy with skin the color of honey. His eyes were expressive and a vibrant blue, just like the sky on a clear, sunny day. Will Solace.

 

“Nico, Will…” Kevin wanted to get straight to the point, but the boys on the other side of the Iris message were bombarding him with questions.

 

“Kev? How are you, I haven’t seen you since the summer! What’s going on?” “Is everything alright? You look worried, did something happen at camp?”

 

“I need your help.” Kevin sighed, beginning to explain the situation. Will and Nico were listening quietly, sometimes nodding in understanding. Nico had tensed up when Kevin mentioned that Fangs had gotten seriously injured - they were half-brothers, after all. Kevin went on interrupted, but Will had cut in after Kevin said, “I figured out where I need to get this antidote. Persephone’s garden.”

 

“Kevin.” Will was giving Kevin the same stare Archie had been giving him a half hour earlier. “You can’t just get to the Underworld from Camp Half-Blood, and you know that. So-”

 

“But you can! Well, Nico can…” Kevin interjected, desperation shining in his jade eyes. “That’s why I need your help. You can shadow-travel me down to the Underworld, and… And I’ll get that cure, and I’ll save Fangs.”

 

Nico gave Will a look that Kevin couldn’t quite place. The two seemed to be having an entire conversation with just their eyes. After a few moments of silence, it was Nico that spoke first. “Kevin, I get that you want to help him. But this all seems so risky, don’t you think?”

 

“Nico, you were younger than me when you went through Tartarus. Alone. I’ve thought about this enough and I’m more than willing to take this risk if it means saving him. I don’t have enough time to waste, please.”

 

“Kevin…” Will frowned. “You’re still just a kid… I don’t want you getting irreversibly hurt.”

 

“I’m not a kid! I’m not the scared little thirteen-year old that couldn’t hold a crossbow I was when you first met me, Will. That was five years ago. I’m eighteen. I’m a legal adult.”

 

Nico didn’t give Will time to process what Kevin had just said before muttering a quick, “We’re coming.” and swiping at the mist in front of him, ending the message. Kevin exhaled a sigh of relief. He knew Nico was such a caring person, and couldn’t deal with any more of his siblings dying. Nico had a troubled past with his siblings being and staying alive. His biological sister, Bianca, had died when he was ten. His half-sister Hazel had been dead, and Nico gave her back a life. Fangs was his first half-brother, and the two became close very quickly.

 

Kevin heard a noise behind him, and expected to see Nico and Will, fresh from New Rome and ready to take Kevin down to the Underworld. But he was met with Sweet Pea standing over him.

 

“Andrews told me about your little plan, Keller.” Sweet Pea was angry, to say the least. His fists were clenched at his sides, his eyes dark and dull.

 

“I… I’m sorry, but there’s literally nothing I can do here that’ll save his life. I’m going down to the Underworld, and I’m saving him.”

 

“Keller. If…” Sweet Pea grimaced, staring out the cabin’s windows. “If Fangs… Doesn’t make it… I can’t lose you, too. You’re like my second brother. If one of you were gone, I don’t think I could live. And if both of you were gone, I  _ know  _ I couldn’t live.”

 

“Sweets… I know what I’m doing. I’m saving him. I’m not letting him die. If not for him, I’d be dead. And I’m not letting him die for me.” Kevin laughed weakly, a sound filled with no real humor. “I’m not worth dying for.”

 

“Don’t talk like that. I know I can’t change your mind, and shit, I’d go with you if I knew what I was supposed to do. Just promise me you’ll be safe.”

 

Kevin didn’t answer just yet. He felt a slight breeze blow against his back and turned around to see Nico and Will, both with sad smiles. “I can’t promise anything…” Kevin did a checklist of everything he had. Sword, check. Crossbow and arrows, check. First aid kit, check. A small amount of ambrosia and nectar, check. Watch, check. “But I can try.”

 

“Ready, kid?” Nico asked, outstretching his arm and looking at Kevin with a small amount of admiration. Kevin reminded Nico of Will when the boy was younger; Kevin’s willingness to drop everything - even his safety - for Fangs reminded Nico of how Will was to him when they first met, and how he was to this day.

 

“Ready.” Kevin’s hand tightened around Nico’s and he inhaled sharply. This was real, and there was no coming back from it if things went wrong. But Kevin was more than certain eh could do this. Fangs’ life was at stake, and Kevin had sworn to himself the first day they met that he’d die for his Chimera Boy.

 

“I can get you to my father’s palace, but that’s it. And I can’t stay. Now close your eyes, or you might get sick.”

**Author's Note:**

> Yep, that was part one! Part two should come out in a few days, I gotta work on finishing and editing and all that jazz. Feedback is always appreciated! Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed! Have a good day/night!


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